Trump looks to fast-track Arctic drilling

This roundup of energy news headlines comes from our Western Energy News newsletter. Sign up to get it in your inbox every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday morning.

FOSSIL FUELS

• The Trump administration moves to fast-track oil and gas drilling on Alaska’s North Slope by allowing winter exploration and drilling to advance without any environmental review. (High Country News)

• The federal Bureau of Land Management seeks public input on 43 proposed oil and gas leases covering 74,550 acres in Utah, including three just outside the boundaries of Bears Ears National Monument. (news release)

• The federal Bureau of Land Management seeks public input on three proposed oil and gas leases on 5,230 acres in Nevada. (news release)

• An analysis finds more than 99% of public commenters oppose the federal Bureau of Land Management’s proposal to roll back Biden-era oil and gas leasing reforms. (news release)

CLIMATE

• A peer-reviewed study attributes Western snowpack and water supply declines in recent decades to climate change exacerbated by emissions from 122 fossil fuel companies and cement producers or ​“carbon majors.” (Inside Climate News)

GRID

• California lawmakers are set to vote this month on bills that would encourage major utilities to use virtual power plants to avoid costly grid upgrades and harness distributed generation to blunt demand peaks. (Canary Media)

• Pacific Gas & Electric plans to expand its electric vehicle bidirectional charging pilot program to include more car and charging and software models. (KQED)

ELECTRIFICATION

• California lawmakers pass legislation that would standardize and streamline heat pump installation permitting. (news release)

TRANSPORTATION

• Oregon’s environment department reopens its Clean Vehicle Rebate program that offers $1,500 to $7,500 against electric or plug-in hybrid vehicle purchases or leases. (Oregon Capital Chronicle)

• Walnut Creek, California’s city council plans to invest more into electrifying its vehicle fleet and deploying public EV-charging infrastructure in an effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. (Mercury News)

UTILITIES

• PacifiCorp agrees to suspend its ratepayer-funded energy efficiency programs in California after the state’s Public Advocates Office finds the programs were not cost-effective. (Utility Dive)

• The federal government files a lawsuit alleging the Trinity Public Utility District’s equipment sparked the 2020 Hobo Fire in northern California. (KCRA)

• Oregon Trail Electric Cooperative line workers go on strike, accusing the utility of unfair labor practices. (OPB)

CLEAN ENERGY

• Avantus secures $300 million in tax equity financing for its 150-MW Arantina 2 solar-plus-storage facility under development in Kern County, California. (PV Tech)

• ForeFront Power completes a 5.8-MW solar-plus-storage canopy parking system for Ventura County, California’s government center. (news release)

NUCLEAR

• Pacific Fusion breaks ground on its $1 billion research and manufacturing campus in Albuquerque, New Mexico, with the mission of creating more energy than it consumes by 2030. (Source NM)

MINING

• Wyoming residents raise environmental concerns about the Trump administration’s plans to fast-track a proposed rare earth mine’s permitting in the northeastern part of the state. (WyoFile)